A quilt store, a neighborhood of old homes, and a snowfall...

 A quilt store, a neighborhood of old homes and a snowfall...
                                                go into a bar...
Maybe not but they are the focus of today's post!

 MILO:    Heyyyyyyyy
How come I can't help dig? I have really strong front paws. I hate hearing, "Milo stay inside for a minute"
I know what that means! Keep out of my way! Don't run off chasing bunnies! no biting my coat!
NO Having Fun...

 LeeAnna: well, doesn't look like Daddy's having that much fun shoveling 5 inches of snow off the drive.Well the brown color is covered by white, and the sky is gray, and the small saplings are still brown.
I live in a neutral world.
Let's remember colors!

 Last weekend we went walkabout in Denver and lo and behold! There was a quilt store! Fancy Tiger. 
I told you about it in (this post) and  (this I Like post) this week. 
It was an oasis of color y'all. Just look at this bin of wool felt rectangles. At two dollars each, I bought three to play with! Whee!

They have unusual clothing patterns, lots of quilting cottons at normal prices, all forms of fiber to felt, weave, knit and embroider, kits for embroidery, tools for every fiber craft, several large classrooms including a cozy big table near the checkout counter, where I watched a group making what appeared to be mixed fiber wall hangings. I had to get some of this...

sort of crazy psychedelic girl pink crazy stuff. I have no idea what to do with it but I liked it! 

After I wallowed in color and talked to peeps that also loved fibers, I rejoined my Men Folk, one of whom was barking to tell me where he was while sitting on the lap of the other. You guess who was whom.

We walked around the Baker neighborhood, something I just love doing. It was started in the 1890s, and went from very modest little cottages to grander homes fit for large families. Imagine the time period. 
 

Loved this old birdhouse on the gate!

Turn of the century, gas lights, indoor plumbing becoming common, the cusp of telephones and electricity and cars. People still sat on front porches and called on neighbors. Windows would be open so one might hear piano's being practiced, children playing, a  Victrola might have ragtime music on. Horses would clop down these streets. There were likely streetcars on Broadway. 

Please enjoy the architectural details I took pics of!  I have a lot of cool images so stay tuned for following posts! 
 

Enchanting front yard, and colorful 50's metal chairs

The swirly tree branches create a mood for this 2nd story porch, don't they?

even the smaller homes had interesting shingle colors. Each home here was unique. Over the years, each owner left their mark, changing colors or creating little odd front yards. I have more shots for tomorrow's post, "eaves, shingles, yards and statues

This one has a very interesting entry to me, with a little porch on top! With a swing!

And all painted the most interesting blend of turquoise, blue, purple, and cream. Picture yourself sitting quietly watching people walk by, maybe reading a novel.

This person had a little lending library for people walking by. Nice to know it's a neighborhood of readers isn't it?

Yes, modest small homes next to grander versions. Very interesting. I always want to find a book on how a city grows. Maybe show the same land each decade to see when a house was squeezed in, when one burned down and a different style was put on that plot.
I'll leave you today with this image...

yes... indeed.
Wage peace! Put fervor into the process! Intent! Power! Power of Peace!
Instead of pretending we are all so different, guarding our resources, arguing over how to get enough, maybe like John Lennon said, we could... like this sign suggests... wage peace?

imagine
 
links
http://stitchallthethings.com/
 Free motion by the River Tuesdays   

Mama likes Fabric!

Look at this adorable fabric I found on sale in CT !
Designed by my local friend Deb Gabel. I  love it! I want to live there. Complete with dogs and cats and birds!
I also got this stash at the same store (sew inspired), most on sale!

I think I'll use the floral batik, really pretty in person to make the purse... if I can follow a pattern instead of making my own that is!

Let me backtrack a bit, and let Milo explain what went down...

Milo, here. I know my Mama is more fun when she's happy, and if Fabric makes her happy, let's visit some fabric stores in Connecticut!. Furst I looked through her directory while lounging around on the hotel sofa.

Yawn! Lots of decisions here, and I have to get Daddy to agree to drive us from place to place and entertain me while she roots around inside for goodies!

I picked out some good ones and we hit the road, Jack!

LeeAnna here... Milo chose some fun places.

I didn't buy stuff at all of them but isn't it great fun to look??!!

I got the Ginny Beyer yellow on sale for $4.99 in one store, and the hocus pocus precuts at another. I love halloween fabric, and these were adorable. I think a very simple design will make the most of them.

Along the way we stopped in NJ at the Olde City Quilts shop where they allowed Milo to terrorize greet the staff! I just love Fossil Ferns, and the row by row patterns at each shop. Both the yardage is extreme sale ($5/yd) and the deer fabric sparkles. The words on the other one are in scrips and French!  The tiny precuts are all polka dots in bright colors. Perfect for ready made hexies. 

 Milo here... whew! I dragged that Mama to enough stores. Time for a wee nap before we go to bed.
Gotta let Mama calm down before bedtime, so I'll just keep the quilt store directory safe til the morning!

It's nice when you can keep a Mama happy!
(No fabric was eaten in the making of this blogpost)

I couldn't resist!

 

Look how pretty! As a quiltmaker, it's just very exciting to enter a fabric store ! All the possibilities! 

Sure I'll be able to make all the patterns I've gotten, as well as all the ideas in my sketchbook! 

Recently we three bugged out to a hotel while my neighbor's all sprayed for mosquitoes. (invading my air space with their neurotoxins) Anyway while DH worked, Milo and I took a car trip to Spring water Designs

where Mama went on a spree!

They graciously allowed the poodle puppy to nap on a cool tile floor while I shopped to my heart's content. 

Look at this panel... each image is about 18" square and the designer is doing four in series, this is the Summer version. I saw their sample made up and it's really striking. I didn't buy it this time, I chose these...

 So happy! I love the colors! In person they are so bright and cheerful

One is from a line called on the road again, and another is laundry day. I thought the little hangers would look cute with my dresses from last year's scrap challenge. 

I got two patterns, the cutest little turtle pin cushion and the setting design for big 12" blocks.

I'm not making the one the shop designed...(contact them for applique patterns)

but I love the idea of setting big blocks this way. It would look great on our king bed.

I also purchased a beach fabric for my friend Mary, and this cork fabric one can sew like regular fabric

During the two day stay, we also visited prints charming for these two beauties!

I was tempted to buy one in each colorway! I love a swirl! 

So, more lovelies to squeeze into the studio stash! More possibilities to work with beautiful colors and prints! 

How will I make all these quilts in one lifetime?! 

linking to

http://mollisparkles 

Now what to make?? Scraps and scrap-loving poodles

 More than a year ago I won a box of scraps. They seemed to be most of a line of fabric and enough to make a big bed quilt so I just pushed them under a table and forgot them.

 Recently I opened the full box of scraps, and washed them resulting in a need to sort them into pattern and color to find out what I have to work with...

 so I sorted the colors and styles into piles all over the family room...

 And  got out the ironing board

I'll Help with that Mama!

 I began pressing the strips and sorting them. I realized there are about 22 different colors and patterns!!

Most of a fabric line probably! They are in differnt length strips by the whole width of fabric. Some are 6 inches down to about 1 and a half inches, different yardage according to color as well.

"Here, let me organize them!"

He loves fabric at 9 weeks old! Loves to suck on it at least

I figure I have the equivalent of about 20 ++ yards of fabric here, in different size strips and amounts. About 21 different pattern/ colors. Want to see?

I have about the equivalent of about 4 1/2 yds of the brown words fabirc, next most is the orange peel design at about 3 yards, then you see three shades of birds, three shades of paisley, another white words

Two shades of tree/birds, four shades of leaves

Lots of these which I do not like at all.
I wonder how they will look cut up, with the pattern they could look interesting.

Anyway it fills a tall container with approx 22 yards in varying strip size.

My challenge now is to choose a pattern that interests me and use as much of it as possible to make a bed quilt. I would like to combine several blocks, some large scale as I have many pieces 12" X 5" some 6" strips and many two and a half inch strips.

I like variety. These are all from the same fabric line and all go together. What shall I make? Whee!

Sometimes too much choice makes it harder....

Working around a 9 week old active standard poodle puppy who also likes fabric and has opinions and wants to "do it myself!" gives me a degree of difficulty rating of 10 !

linking to several parties including
http://www.quiltfabrication.com/
Esther's blog Wednesdays 
Let's be social Wednesdays 

Fabric purchased, fabric used!

As you know, on any trip the most important item packed is your sewing project. This was one of three projects I took on my recent plane trip to Colorado. I didn't get as many done as I hoped and the basting is still in but you get the picture. They fit in a 3 inch square finished.
So cute!
We went to check out the area for a possible move. While there we hoped to meet people, see contra dances, go to quilt stores (maybe I wanted that one more than Mr Not Afraid of Color) and see mountains. 
I'll be doing several posts on the trip, of course, because I have so much to tell you!!!

Today let's focus on the important things.... FABRIC 

 while looking around Downtown Boulder, my friend Mary and I peeked into Fabricate. The store was about as large as my studio and had cute modern very expensive fabrics. Still I had to get some flamingos right? Right. And the daisy to go with because I want to do that pattern soon. 
Another lovely quilt shop, maybe my fave of this trip was the Presser Foot in Longmont, CO.

friendly ladies and great stuff! I showed GREAT restraint in only purchasing this

a pattern using panels almost gone! I got the last large one. Some fabrics to border my recent abstracts, script on cream, all in a red tote bag to reuse. Here's the pattern made up. So fun.

While on a house finding day I asked to stop at the Quilters Corner  in Erie CO

where I proceeded to show GREAT restraint because I wanted LOTS of fabrics and patterns
but left with this

wonderful script fabric and check out the dachshund pattern!!! Wearing glasses. Different sweaters.

and this black and white

 All wrapped like a party in a bag!

I was so pleased to meet Diann from Little Penguin quilts in person. Her husband Mike, my husband she and I got on so well. Isn't it fun to meet people in person? Of course she's ear-less now that I talked her EARS off! I staged this photo... I said grab a bolt for a pic! It tells a lot like a Rorschach test doesn't it? I grab pink and orange with lime, she grabs one that she'd use? Hmmmm guess I could be considered bold.... soft heart though! Diann made me this bag and mug rug....

On top are some metallic paper bunnies to play around with this spring
 I gave her a slice of pie pin cushion, with whipped cream on top!

 I showed GREAT restraint, with an eye to flying home these fabric purchases, and left with only these

So pretty! Two of which were on sale. The owner has two airedales so we talked dogs as well. There is a Poodle in that pink dog fabric! speaking of dogs... I got these three at Estes

at the Stitchin' Den.
They cater to knitters embroiderers and quilters in the picturesque mountain town.

The fabrics were expensive so I got these three fiat quarters but ain't they cute?
The top snow grades from light to dark.






That's it for my fabric purchases. We were too tired to go to a contra dance by the evenings (altitude) but there are lots of fun pictures and adventures to share this week. On Wed there will be a dog post, on Thurs likes there are several surprises. 
Went to CO wish you were here!  
linking to among others on my links page:
         mollisparkles Sundays                                        design wall mondays
oh Scrap Sundays 
 slow stitching Sundays